2021 was something else! We experienced more love, more compassion, more understanding and more clarity as we navigated another year of calamity, division, illness, passing of loved ones, and uncertainty. I believe we will always have more of that on which we choose to focus. I believe it goes without saying that most of us hoped that 2021 would return to a closer version of normalcy such as before COVID-19. If anything, this year proved to show the resilience, determination, and solution orientation of our Realtors and many of our affiliates. To those drinking from a glass half-full – well done! To those whose glass is half-empty, it’s never too late to reframe your perspective!
Now, I would encourage you to ask yourself these questions:
- What did you learn this year?
- What was your favorite part of the year and why?
- How will you enter 2022 in mindset, attitude and health?
- Who could you forgive or ask forgiveness from in 2022?
- Who are the five people with which you spend the most time?
- Are these people helping you become a better version of yourself or holding you back?
Answers to these questions and the resulting actions provide a snapshot of what needs to change in your world. At the end of the year, month, day, hour and moment, we have a chance to shift away from fear to a place of love. This is what it is all about for me, my family and my work family.
I know year-end letters are an opportunity to pat ourselves on the back! So here it is – this year we truly did an incredible job for our clients and friends!
2021 represented the third year existing as Amanda Howard Sotheby’s International Realty. The growth has been fantastic, both with agent headcount and families served! More importantly, I continued to learn how to work towards a better version of myself, and learned the importance of taking time to slow down. This journey resulted in an incredible renewal of my understanding of the importance of my family. They are truly my everything. A close second are all the amazing partners at this incredible company. We possess the most caring, compassionate and tenacious real estate professionals in Alabama and quite possibly the world.
Recent Accomplishments of 2021
I was excited to surprise my Realtors at the beginning of the year with a LIVE Zoom call featuring Ryan Serhant, Reality Star on Bravo’s hit television series ‘Million Dollar Listing New York’ and NY Real Estate broker. He shared with our sales team of agents his tips on winning real estate transactions in this challenging market and touched on his story of how he got started in the industry. It was a fun and memorable experience none of us will easily forget. (Also we all received his new best-selling book!)
I was interviewed by several local news sources on the State of the Market regarding the fluctuation and changes we have experienced in our North Alabama marketplace. In addition, I was interviewed on top podcasts across the country regarding building sustainable Teams, and pro tips on winning the multiple offer challenges all Realtors (and clients) are facing in these new times.
Our brokerage was humbled and surprised to have won multiple awards in 2021.
- Best Brokerage of Huntsville by Rocket City Broadcasting
- Best Brokerage of Bama by Alabama Magazine.
- As Managing Broker I was recognized by Disruptors Magazine as one of the “Top 20 Business Coaches to look out for in 2021”
- Awarded Three Best Real Estate Agents in Huntsville, AL. by Three Best Rated.
- Additionally two of our Real Estate agents were listed in Real Trends & The Wall Street Journal as Top 1% of agents in the Country; Adam Stults, and Ianni Nicolaou
As you see, we had SO much to be proud of, and to be grateful for this year at Amanda Howard Sotheby’s International Realty.
Lastly, we at Amanda Howard Sotheby’s International Realty are HUGE fans and advocates of our community. It is actually one of our core values, and is so important to us that a piece of EVERY commission earned on homes we are fortunate enough to have helped close, we donate to a local charity. This year that reached to over 55 local charities and schools with contributions or sponsorships for their philanthropic fundraisers! That is something that I am over the moon proud of, and makes me even more excited to come to work every day to see the impact those contributions are making. All with much thanks to every single one of our amazing clients.
If you’re wondering what we are looking forward to most in 2022, for starters, we are very excited about some happy new faces that have already committed to joining us in 2022. Our growing work family is always such a joy, and our amazing support team (as well as myself) finds fulfillment every day being able to serve these wonderful agents of ours. Next we are also very excited to announce that we have purchased and closed on a new office building in Downtown Huntsville so that we can be even closer to all of the local businesses we love to support and the fun downtown events we love to sponsor and attend. Our new address will be 315 Franklin Street (across from Commerce Kitchen), and we are on target to move late February. Our beautiful building on L&N Drive has served us well, but we need more space, so it is currently up for lease!
Thank you for the opportunity to serve you in the years past, and we appreciate you trusting us with your friends and family referrals for the future. Everyone at Amanda Howard Sotheby’s International Realty wishes you a successful and prosperous 2022. I look forward to seeing you downtown or at our new office location when we announce our Grand Opening!
Cheers,
Amanda S. Howard
